> Oh, and Polgara is (I think) ripped off Galadriel, in LOTR. But more mumsy.
How bizarre. I remember classing Galadriel as a classic helpless
inspiration type, when I read it.
> I realised that the whole world of the Belgariad/Mallorean was really quite
> right-wing and racist.
Oh, definitely.
It was so obvious to me that Riva was meant to be
> the UK (small, cold island in the north-west of the world, is pretty much
> the boss of all the other nations...) and then the other "good" countries
> were various other western nations. Then there are those guys who live in
> swamps and talk to snakes and are all eunuchs - not necessarily BAD guys,
> but really, a bit NQR. So, Asia. (are they on our side? don't know. they
> eat spicy food: can we REALLY trust them?)
Eddings definitely leans VERY hard on racial stereotypes, both positive
and negative. They get a bit reconsidered in the Mallorean (sp?) but
biology is definitely destiny for him.
> Oh, and sure, there are women, and they are strong. But they still do all
> the cooking (mostly stew) and cleaning, and whenever there is a battle they
> go and hide behind a big rock until the Men have saved the day. Grr.
Remember, when I was growing up, there were seldom strong women
characters that weren't expert fighters. I got tired of it; couldn't
identify with them really. His strong women, though, have a very strong
streak of female chauvenist piggness which I find both enjoyable and
annoying. You could sort of see them being reasonably happy in the world
of _Aunt Maria_ for instance.
-- Jadwiga Zajaczkowa, Knowledge Pika jenne at fiedlerfamily.net
"America was not built on fear. America was built on courage, on
imagination and an unbeatable determination to do the job at hand."
-- Harry S. Truman